Every time I log on to social media (which is probably more often than I should), there’s always plenty of things that grab my attention. Seeing a friend’s new baby, an update from my sister travelling around Central America or whatever country she’s in at the moment, another meme about the Great British Bake off, or a riveting comment thread from whatever politically or religiously divisive article one of my friends has posted. Now I love to get into a good ol’ Facebook debate. If you know me, then you know that I can have very strong opinions about things, and love to engage in a debate or argument over the web defending whatever position I hold. Whether it’s LGBTQ rights, systemic racism, Donald Trump, Brexit or Marvel vs. DC, I will vehemently defend and argue my opinion. I try to be open to other’s points of view but if my deconstruction has taught me anything, it’s that I can be wrong about things and that’s OK. Debate and discussion help me to see other’s point of view and learn from them where I can. But I’m starting to realise that holding an opinion or a position on things is not enough.
It’s easy to post a status, write a tweet or share an article about something and feel like you’re doing something. To an extent, it does make a difference, seeing the way the internet responds to tragedies like the recent attacks in Paris and Orlando can be incredibly moving. The #blacklivesmatter campaign raised awareness of the systemic racism in America, and by extension the UK and other western countries. It’s something that I’ll continue to do, but I’ve realised that as important as talking about issues and raising awareness is, it’s not enough. As much as posting a Facebook status feels like I’m playing my part in making a difference, if I’m honest, part of it is just a hollow way of justifying not changing the way I live my life or engaging with things practically.
Last week I made the long overdue step of moving out of my parent’s home. Having lived in London my whole life, moving out had never really been a financial possibility. However, I realised that at the ripe old age of 24, that needed to change, so 1st October 2016 was the day I moved from London, halfway across the country to Manchester. I’ve decided to use this fresh start as an opportunity to challenge myself is to start putting my money where my mouth is. I don’t want just to be another voice in the wind; I want to start acting on the things that I believe and let my life be a representation of the values and opinions I shout about on social media. I want to use my life to make a difference in this world, so that when I look back on my life, I can feel like I’ve been on the right side of history and honestly tell my kids that I fought to make this country and the world in which I live a better place.
There are lots of ways that I can do this, so I’m going to spend the next few weeks looking at different areas in which I’m trying to make my actions match my words. Check back in the coming weeks to see what I come up with!
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